Every time Steve Jobs makes a presentation or Barack Obama makes a speech, the world watches or listens with bated breath. What special talent does it take to hold the attention of a million people and have them hanging on to your every word?
Did someone say “presentation skills”? Yes, but it takes more that that.
Great speakers are admired and envied alike. It’s true that a talent for public speaking is a gift that that some are born with. However, with a little patience and a lot of practice, you can be as good a public speaker as anyone you know. It’s a useful skill for doctors, managers, coaches, team leaders and just about anyone whose job requires them to interact with people and motivate them.
Here are a few tips for success in public speaking.
Listen
Strangely, the first step to being a good speaker is to start by being a good listener. Before you meet your audience, do your research and rehearse what you are going to say. Play the content of your speech over in your head, write it down, or say it aloud to people whose opinion you trust. Next, learn about your audience. Understand their backgrounds and why they are here to listen to you. While you are addressing them, watch them and look out for their body language. Are they attentive or bored? Engage the audience by asking questions and interact with them. Be judicious with eye contact – do not stare too long at a particular member of the audience because it can make some listeners uncomfortable and distracted.
Be sincere
There’s a saying among the Toastmasters International community: “Say what you mean and mean what you say.” It means “tell the truth” and “keep your word”. Have something to say and believe in what you are saying. When you take your place before your audience, make a commitment to yourself that the next ten or twenty minutes will make a difference to them, and to you. Your content, form and articulation must reflect this commitment.
Keep it brief
Brevity is more than the soul of wit. Being brief means more than keeping your speech short – it extends to keeping the components of your speech digestible. Use shorter words and words with fewer syllables. Speak in a language everyone can understand and yet don’t sacrifice the beauty of language.
Confidence is key
If you are carrying notes to aid your memory, make sure you read them well before you get up to the lectern. Your audience will be distracted if you stop and peer at your notes, or if you look distractedly at your watch. Your body language should reflect confidence and poise. If your speech requires the use of a slide-show or a PowerPoint deck, make sure your audience focuses on you – the presenter – and not the screen – the presentation aid. Your presentation aid should enhance your speech and not the other way round.
Show and tell
Illustrate your points by telling your audience stories. However, don’t stop at just telling your listeners what you think. Show them. Illustrate your points with anecdotes (or, if you are using presentation aids, charts and pictures). Use concrete images, not abstract ones. Relate to your audience and use terms of reference that it is familiar with. Martin Luther King’s famous “I had a dream” speech was simple, free-flowing and easy to understand. Yet, it was rich in metaphor and packed with power to rouse people to action. No wonder it is richly quotable today.
Develop your unique style
As a speaker, you must train yourself to develop originality and panache. Watch a lot of speakers in action, emulate their best practices and assimilate them into your repertoire. Adopt an open, welcoming and friendly posture. Sprinkle a generous sense of humor but stay within the boundaries of context, relevance and good taste. If you are uncomfortable with certain words or phrases, conquer them first. Learn to say them correctly and make use of them more often in your speeches. It’s a matter of time before you are bubbling with confidence and ready to make speeches impromptu.
Resources:
If you are interested in shaping your public speaking skills, it may be a good idea to join Toastmasters International, a worldwide club of speaking enthusiasts. To find a club close to your location, visit this link.
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Truly inspiring, touching and moving true stories. Every human being is a bunch of different life stories. Let us keep knowing and learning.